By PEGGY KING
CORDELE – Newly elected City Commissioners Curtis Lucas Jr. who succeeds Willie Colson Jr. and Jeanie Bartee who succeeds herself took their oaths of office at the first meeting of Cordele City Commission in 2010 Tuesday night.
Chairman Zack Wade was not sworn in, City Attorney Tommy Cotton explained, because his election is being contested. Cotton said he was instructed Tuesday morning by Superior Court Judge Sarah Wall who is handling the election case not to administer the oath to Wade until the situation is resolved.
Since no one has been elected to succeed the chairman, however, Cotton continued, Wade will continue to serve until his successor is chosen.
In reorganizing for the new year, city commissioners selected A. J. Rivers as their vice chairman, Tommy Cotton as their attorney and P. Melton Culpepper as their judge.
Various committee/board members whose terms expired Dec. 31, 2009 were reappointed as follows: Jimmy Black, Animal Control Board; Theodore Tolbert and Beverly Whelchel, Building Code Board of Adjustments and Appeals (A&A;); Warren Hall and Fred Phillips, Electrical Code Board of A&A; William Hurt, Fire Code Board of A&A; Roger Alexander and Lonnie Bronson, Gas Code Board of A&A;
Susan Barge, Barbara McLeod, Frank Forth, Joseph Ward, Howard Rainey, Ida Rose Oliver and Eloyse Lockhart, Historic Preservation Committee; Jack Hamilton Jr. and Nathaniel Jackson, Housing Code Board of A&A; Harry Vonier, Mechanical Board of A&A;
Leo Brown and Bill Nesbitt, Plumbing Code Board of A&A; Billy Raines and Ken Lewis, Flood Plain Appeals Board.
New appointees include Curtis Lucas Jr. to serve on the City Pension Committee and Les Howard on the Mechanical Board of A&A.;
Vacancies on the following boards will be filled at the next meeting: Fire Code Board of A&A; Cross Connection Control Program; and the Handicap Committee. Members of the Commission will also be appointed to several boards.
City Manager Jean Burnette reported that the city must rebid a portion of a water project on West 16th Ave. because of contamination that has been found in the soil.
For the rest of the story, read Thursday's Cordele Dispatch.
